Paris Saint-Germain have been ordered to pay Kylian Mbappe a total of £52.5million in unpaid salary and bonuses by a French court. The forward left PSG on a free transfer in the summer of 2024 to sign for Real Madrid, who had been pursuing him for several years. He had previously turned down a record-breaking move to Saudi club Al-Hilal, which was believed to include a transfer fee of around £262m.
That failed move sparked a bitter dispute between PSG and Mbappe, which reached a labour court in Paris last month. Mbappe had been seeking £231.5m from his former club, which included £46.3m in unpaid wages. He claimed the nine-figure sum as damages in response to a contract dispute and alleged ill-treatment by the French giants.
However, he has only been awarded a fraction of that amount with the court recognising that PSG had failed to pay three months of his salary, in addition to an ethics bonus and a signing bonus under the terms of his contract.
Mbappe’s lawyer, Frederique Cassereau, said: « We are satisfied with this ruling. This is what you could expect when salaries went unpaid. »
The court’s ruling can be appealed, though, which suggests an end to the lengthy dispute between the two parties may not yet be in sight.
PSG had been counter-suing Mbappe for around £211m, citing damages and a ‘loss of opportunity’ after he left on a free transfer following his decision to reject a move to Al-Hilal.
Their relationship took a bitter turn when Mbappe decided not to extend his contract in 2023, which was set to expire in the summer of 2024.
This denied the club a hefty transfer fee after they offered him the most lucrative contract in their history in 2022. Mbappe was subsequently ostracised from the first-team group and forced to train with fringe players during pre-season.
He missed the opening league game but returned to the line-up for his final season after internal discussions with the club, which are central to the dispute.
PSG accused Mbappe of reneging on an agreement that allegedly included a pay cut, should he depart on a free transfer. The club said this arrangement was made to protect their financial stability.
They claimed Mbappe hid his decision not to extend his contract for nearly 11 months, preventing a transfer from being arranged and causing serious financial harm to the club.
Mbappe was also accused him of violating contractual obligations and the principles of good faith and loyalty.
The player’s advisors added: « Mbappe scrupulously fulfilled his sporting and contractual obligations for seven years and right up to the final day.
« He did everything possible to avoid litigation, even going so far as to withdraw a harassment complaint in a spirit of conciliation. In total, he had been seeking payment of his salaries and bonuses for more than 18 months. »
PSG denied all accusations of harrassment, pointing out that Mbappe played in 94 per cent of matches during his final season and always worked under conditions that were compliant with the Professional Football Charter.
Mbappe remains on the books of Real Madrid, where he is tied down until the summer of 2029. PSG, meanwhile, won the Champions League last season without him in their squad.
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